poached – Better with Lemon

There is something about quince that really takes me back to my childhood. I always remember having it either as a jam or a preserve or a thick jelly-like paste, moderately sweet, something vaguely exotic about it, and with that unmistakable texture, like a thousand tiny grains in your mouth. I can’t say it was ever my absolute favorite dessert as a kid. It was probably my second least favorite, behind a preserve made from bitter green oranges called kitromilo. But it was, and is, a taste of home, as familiar as my mom’s avgolemono soup and rose-flavored ice cream.

The funny thing is that I never actually saw an uncooked quince until I moved to the US and found it many years later at a farmer’s market. You’ll know it’s there before you see it. If the quince is ripe, it perfumes the air with the scents of apples and pears and vanilla, with a hint of something flowery (maybe cardamom?). But don’t be tempted to take a bite. Quinces are incredibly astringent when raw. But when cooked, they become sweet and soft, while changing color from white to pink and apricot hues.

So, as you plan your Thanksgiving meal, looking at yet another variation on pecan pie and pumpkin pie, consider this: quince slices, poached in a delicately spiced juice, served with a dollop of whipped cream. It’s the dessert for that moment when everyone says they simply have no more room in their bellies. Or even better, it’s the simple breakfast for you the next morning.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Quince Poached in Juice – Adapted from Plenty More: Vibrant Vegetable Cooking from London’s Ottolenghi

Ingredients:

2 large quinces, peeled and quartered
3½ cups pomegranate juice, tart cherry juice, or cranberry juice
5½ tablespoons sugar
1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise, seeds scraped
rind from one (preferably unsprayed) orange, shaved in strips with a vegetable peeler
¼ cup fresh orange juice
2 star anise pods

Directions:

Remove the core from the quince quarters. Discard half of the cores and tie the remaining half in a bundle using double-layered cheese cloth. Cut the quince quarters in half lengthwise. You will have 16 quince slices.

Place the quince slices in a large saucepan and add the juice, sugar, vanilla bean and seeds, orange rind, orange juice, and star anise. Add the bundle of cores and bring to a boil. Turn down heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cover the pan. Cook for about 20 minutes until the quince quarters are soft.

Using a slotted spoon, remove quince slices and set aside. Keep lid off pan and bring back to a low boil. Cook sauce for about 30 minutes until it has reduced and is slightly thicker (the consistency of thin syrup). Remove from heat and remove and discard core bundle, rind, star anise, and vanilla bean. Return quince slices in saucepan and stir gently to coat.

Serve warm or chilled (let quince cool in syrup and chill, covered, in fridge). Top with a dollop of whipped cream, crème fraîche, or clotted cream.

I’ve always loved cooking for people. I rarely cook just for myself. This is partly because cooking is an activity with a very specific end result. When I cook, I create something. And that’s something I want to share. Often it’s something I want to show off. I’ll be the first to admit that humility is not an ingredient in my cooking.

So, I’ve always loved having dinner parties. Even when I lived in apartments with impossibly small kitchens, I’d have friends over for dinner. Out of a half size oven and a workspace the size of school desk, I have produced multi course meals for eight people. When Steve and I met, we found our love for food was mutual. So, the dinner parties continued and became more elaborate. We started pairing wines with every course. We printed menus.

The only problem with such extravagant affairs has been that at times we ended up spending more time in the kitchen than at the table with our friends. So, over the last few years I’ve adjusted our menus, opting for dishes that can be prepared ahead of time and served easily and quickly. This recipe is one of our favorites. It takes 15 minutes to put together but the result is delicious and impressive.

Fish is especially difficult for dinner parties. It so often requires cooking right before eaten, it smells up the kitchen, and it can easily be overcooked. By poaching it gently in the oven in olive oil, this recipe takes care of all of those problems. In fact, I’ve often left it in the oven for 30 minutes past what the recipe says and I’ve never had any problems with it. The fish always comes out tender, moist, and flavorful.

If you are worried about the amount of olive oil, don’t be. The fish absorbs almost none of it. And in the end, you can strain the olive oil and keep it in the fridge. Use it whenever you cook anything with seafood. It will have only the slightest hint of the fish, capers, and lemons.

Oven Poached Fish in Olive Oil – Slightly adapted from Epicurious.com

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1/4 cup capers, rinsed
2 – 2 1/2 lb (1-inch-thick) skinless, firm, white flesh fish fillets (such as halibut or chilean sea bass)
1 1/2 large lemons, very thinly sliced crosswise
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
About 2 cups extra-virgin olive oil (enough to cover the fish)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 250°F.

Chop half of capers and pat fish dry. Sprinkle fish with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and let stand 10 minutes at room temperature. Arrange half of lemon slices in 1 layer in an 8-inch square glass baking dish and arrange fish in 1 layer over lemon. Top with all of capers, remaining lemon slices, and 3 tablespoons parsley, then pour oil over fish. Bake in middle of oven, uncovered, until fish just flakes and is cooked through, about 1 to 1 1/4 hours.

Serve fish with some of lemon slices, capers, and oil spooned over. Sprinkle with remaining parsley.